NEW ORLEANS, May 17, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — As part of its ongoing commitment to helping ensure the success of the financial services industry, Envestnet (NYSE: ENV) today announced the winners of its first-ever Envestnet Institute on Campus (EIOC) Vision Awards and its Essential Advisor Awards at the annual Advisor Summit in New Orleans.

“Just as we provide the tools and resources to empower current financial advisors to navigate the complex industry, we are equally committed to developing and preparing future essential advisors,” said Bill Crager, Envestnet President. “We’re pleased to honor the multiple organizations and individuals who embody the values of both our Envestnet Institute on Campus and Essential Advisor programs, and further our commitment to bettering the wealth management industry.”

Envestnet Institute on Campus is a program designed to develop a collaborative relationship between academia and industry-leading wealth and asset management firms in order to address the well-documented problem of the talent gap in the industry. Since its inception in spring 2015, more than 1,100 students have completed the EIOC program and 23 universities are participating in the program.

The new EIOC Vision Awards recognize individuals and firms who act as agents of change for the successful future of the wealth management industry. The inaugural award winners include:

University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW): Envestnet is recognizing the University’s leadership in bringing the world of business into the world of academia. UNCW has formulated a unique model that Envestnet has adopted as an example for other schools to blend academia and business. One notable aspect of this model is UNCW’s Annual Business Week, sponsored by the Cameron School of Business, which brings its students together with successful business professionals.

Paul Vladem, President, Associated Investor Services: Paul is truly redefining hiring practices and the traditional definition of diversity. He and Associated Investor Services have diverted from the usual method of hiring and embraced the EIOC model as a component of succession planning for their firm. Envestnet relies on their success and experiences as a case study for other firms to reference.

“We are proud to honor our first-ever EIOC Vision Award winners for their outstanding contributions to the worlds of academia and business,” said Jim Seuffert, Managing Director, Envestnet. “The asset and wealth management industry must harness our collective resources to make a major impact in solving the talent gap issue, and it’s organizations like UNCW and individuals like Paul Vladem that are truly making a difference.”

Envestnet also announced winners of the second annual Essential Advisor™ Awards during the Advisor Summit. These awards accompany the Essential Advisor™ Certification Program available at the Summit and are given to advisors who embody the values detailed in The Essential Advisor: Building Value in the Investor-Advisor Relationship, an insightful handbook for advisors looking to navigate the changing face of financial services, co-authored by Envestnet President Bill Crager. This year’s recipients include:

Eric Cumley, Olympic Wealth Management: When Eric realized his clients would be best served by true independence, he opened his own Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) and utilized a fee-only service model, choosing Envestnet as his platform. Since opening Olympic Wealth Management, Eric has grown his assets significantly and has successfully brought on clients given his knowledge and expertise of the Boeing Retirement Plan. Eric collaborates with professionals in the field to ensure he can solve for any client need, regardless of the complexity of their financial situation, and firmly believes that he can best serve clients by focusing on their goals, not his. Eric also utilizes complex financial planning technology and software, and provides his clients with the same, to better meet their needs.

Charlotte Dougherty, Dougherty & Associates: As founder and Managing Partner of Dougherty & Associates, an award-winning, nationally recognized financial planning and wealth management firm, Charlotte and her team help individuals, families and businesses achieve their true financial potential through the knowledge and guidance that results in better outcomes. She provides customized, unbiased, intelligent guidance and earns the trust of each of her clients. Charlotte is passionate about helping people on their journey to realizing their financial goals and takes the time to understand every client’s full financial life, their current timeline, their goals and the personal relationships that affect their life choices.

Jill Lizzi, Bronfman Rothschild: As Director of Wealth Advisory, Jill works closely with affluent families to provide comprehensive advice for all aspects of their financial planning needs. She is an award winning independent RIA managing more than $6 billion in client assets. Helping her clients meet their financial goals is one of the most rewarding aspects of Jill’s job. She guides her clients through both simple and complex issues that may arise, including estate planning, tax planning, investment management and retirement planning. Jill is also a Tamaracplatform power user who is all about leveraging technology to free up her time from operational issues and spend more time with clients. As an early adopter of the client portal, Jill has been an advocate for the security aspects and accessibility of the portal functionality from Tamarac.

Dan Smith, Signature Wealth Advisors: As Managing Partner, Dan caters to busy, family-oriented, successful business owners and professionals who are seeking a full-service financial partnership by simplifying the complexity of their financial lives. He has a unique ability to deliver objective and unbiased financial solutions. Dan recognizes there is no “one-size-fits-all” financial product, which is why he takes the time to listen to what his clients are trying to achieve in order to develop a financial plan designed to help them attain their goals with some of the best managers and products the industry has to offer. He participated in the Essential Advisor Program in 2017. Dan is also actively involved in serving his community and has served on multiple boards for organizations in Central Florida.

About EnvestnetEnvestnet, Inc. (NYSE: ENV) is a leading provider of intelligent systems for wealth management and financial wellness. Envestnet’s unified technology enhances advisor productivity and strengthens the wealth management process. Envestnet empowers enterprises and advisors to more fully understand their clients and deliver better outcomes.

More than 87,000 advisors and 3,000 companies including: 16 of the 20 largest U.S. banks, 43 of the 50 largest wealth management and brokerage firms, over 500 of the largest Registered Investment Advisers, and hundreds of Internet services companies, leverage Envestnet technology and services. Envestnet solutions enhance knowledge of the client, accelerate client on-boarding, improve client digital experiences and help drive better outcomes for enterprises, advisors and their clients.

For more information on Envestnet, please visit www.envestnet.com and follow @ENVintel.